What kind of market do we find ourselves in at present?

Depends what you are trading-look at the S&P Mid Cap- its only a few points shy of its ALL TIME high. I would definitely classify that as a Bull Market. Everything else, not really sure if you can call them rallies in a Secular Bear Market or a new Bull Market-need more evidence. What I wonder about is why is gold doing so well, doesn't gold usually go down in bull markets?

Its been a bull market since October last year. Was there an economic recession before this? Technically and statistically, sure, mild at worst, but unnoticeable in ordinary life with spending apace, a continuous housing boom and, well, just plenty of the 'feel good' factor'.

I still believe this is a bull market inside a long term, secular bear market.

We haven't had anywhere near the pain and suffering needed to eliminate the excess of the late 1990's. We had the biggest bull market in history, and we escape it with the Wall Street establishment and mutual funds unscathed. No way. That isn't how a savage bear market ends. It will end when:

No one wants to go to work on Wall Street.

Major Mutual funds go bust.

Stock levels relative to household financial assets falls back into its long term average (mondays wall street journal chronicled this).

AMZN is a $50 stock!! And they still aren't making any money.

Mutual Funds experience net redemptions for at least a few years.

Prices get unreasonably low. A p/e of 30 on the S&P doesn't qualify.

5-10 years from now, the DOW will still be between 7500-9500 if not lower.

I still believe this is a bull market inside a long term, secular bear market.

We haven't had anywhere near the pain and suffering needed to eliminate the excess of the late 1990's. We had the biggest bull market in history, and we escape it with the Wall Street establishment and mutual funds unscathed. No way. That isn't how a savage bear market ends. It will end when:

No one wants to go to work on Wall Street.

Major Mutual funds go bust.

Stock levels relative to household financial assets falls back into its long term average (mondays wall street journal chronicled this).

AMZN is a $50 stock!! And they still aren't making any money.

Mutual Funds experience net redemptions for at least a few years.

Prices get unreasonably low. A p/e of 30 on the S&P doesn't qualify.

5-10 years from now, the DOW will still be between 7500-9500 if not lower.

More...

Amen!

Someday we'll look back fondly at the notion of "Nightly Business Reports". We'll marvel that there were three major financial cable networks. And this ET will be as distant a memory as Spielberg's ET.